Multiparticle emission in the interactions of hadrons with complex nuclei at incident momenta from 2 to 4 GeV/c

The charged secondary particles emitted in inelastic reactions of 4 GeV/cπ⁺ and π^? with the nuclei Be, Cu and Ta are thoroughly studied in their multiplicities, particle correlations and the distributions of kinematical variables, with the 1 m hydrogen bubble chamber into which the three nuclear target plates were installed. The numbers of charged secondaries emitted in the π^?(2.3 GeV/c), π⁺(2 GeV/c) and p(4 GeV/c) reactions are also investigated. From these data, characteristic features of the multiplication process of secondaries in nuclear matter are clarified. The experimental results are compared with the calculation of an intra-nuclear cascade model which takes into account the process of pion absorption by two-nucleon clusters in the nucleus. It is found that the experimental results on the properties of charged secondaries are consistently explained by the model. The model can also give an account of the experimental finding that fairly high momentum protons are emitted from the heavier nuclei into the backward hemisphere in the lab system.